Bombay used to party, Mumbai's catching up: How the city's partying habits have changed

The year was 1996 and Tejas Mangeshkar was 20 at the time His grandmother ldquoBaijirdquo Pramila Mangeshkar offered him a space in the balcony of her Mahim house for his new creative studio Fiction Zone which he later renamed GrandMother India after her ldquoOur neighbouring building was called St Alvares Houserdquo Mangeshkar tells us ldquoIt overlooked the Arabian SeardquoAs they camped on the ground floor at fellow artiste Anand Tharaneyrsquos studio above them was photographer Suresh Natarajan Feroze Khanrsquos theatre production company and an advertising agency ldquowho were all like characters from Mad Menrdquo he saysZenzi was the scene for many a cool people in Bandra Founder Anil Kably shares footage of one of Zenzirsquos partiesldquoAs India went through the liberalisation of the 1990s we were exposed to international TV channels for the first timerdquo says Mangeshkar ldquoMusic videos entered Indian homes and inspired an entire generation People changed the way they dressed styled their hair and expressed themselves It sparked the rise of designers hairstylists filmmakers artists and other creative professions A whole creative ecosystem began to emerge mdash and that ecosystem needed places to gather connect and partyrdquoAnd party they did at Alvares House Mangeshkarrsquos friends Mukul Deora and Ashim Ahluwalia who were also his cofounders of the music collective Bhavishyavani Future Soundz would bring back CDs and cassettes from London and New York ldquoThey were importing fresh drum and bass jungle electronic music and ambient music into the city The rest of us were introducing it to the people of MumbairdquoBack then there were no cell phones or Internet Mangeshkar and friends would make screenprinted flyers and leave them at places like Leopold Mondegarrsquos Totorsquos Garage Go Bananas and Rock Around The Clock RATC Slowly Alvares House became a hub for partying with the cool crowd ldquoEventually the parties became overcrowded We had more than 40 people turning up At that point we realised the police would start noticing usrdquo Mangeshkar saysAnd so it was time to move the revelry ldquoWe deliberately chose places that werenrsquot doing well because we didnrsquot care about the venuersquos reputationrdquo he says ldquoWe cared about finding the right location mdash a place where the police wouldnrsquot interfere one that looked interestingrdquoDJ Russel is the chief of music at High NoteMangeshkar says ldquoThat was really the beginning of electronic party culture in Mumbairdquo The initial parties were at venues like Madness Khar now called Voltage Scream in Vile Parle Suzie Wong in Colaba and Razzberry Rhinoceros in JuhuThese parties became something of a legend for rsquo90s Bombay One Mangeshkar remembers vividly was called ldquoHitchhike to the partyrdquo ldquoPeople had to reach a secret location using clues hidden around the cityrdquo he tells us ldquoBack then hitchhiking still happened You could stand on Cadell Road or Marine Drive stick out your thumb and somebody would offer you a ride Taxi rides were expensive so hitchhiking was part of youth culture The whole party was built around that ideardquoGirish lsquoBobbyrsquo Talwar and ACP Vasant DhobleClose by on Waterfield Road another party was brewing at Zenzi ldquoBandra has always just been cool The catholic community informed how the place looked and felt architecturally and culturally It had a distinct identity Back then there were many more cottages and standalone houses and far fewer buildingsrdquo Anil Kably tells us who opened the doors to Zenzi in 2004ldquoDuring the early 2000s a lot of younger creative people moved in to Bandra because they felt a kinship with the place The rents were cheaper It was tucked away from the linear structure of Bombay and had its own little culturerdquo Kably says ldquoZenzi happened to be there at the right time with the right programming the right vibe and the right peoplerdquoTejas Mangeshkar left at one of the first venues where he hosted parties previously called Madness with Mukul Deora right PicSatej ShindeZenzi became the place that welcomed everyone with a tie or just in shirts and flipflops ldquoEventually it grew into the kind of place where you could just get off your couch at home and think lsquoI just want to go hang outrsquo People would come in for a beer and they would run into friends and other likeminded people It became a kind of community by itself It fed on itself in a wayrdquoWe ask him about his favourite memories ldquoTo tell you the truth the eight years of Zenzi were just one big blur Thatrsquos how good a party it wasrdquoThe partying scene was a small circuit in Mumbai in the 1990s Everybody knew each otherMusician and founder of management company Rebellion Girish ldquoBobbyrdquo Talwar who created NH7 Weekender was also partying it up in those days After a long night of revelry at Razzberry Rhinoceros in Juhu you could find him eating chinese food at Juhu Bus StopldquoBack then after partying you would hit up food joints that only opened in the night I specifically remember a place called Rajput near Shivaji Park and their most popular dish called lsquosalty ricersquordquo he tells us over a phone call from Portugal ldquoYoursquod often run into people yoursquod been partying with at a disco at Churchgate Station eating pav bhaji or at Rajput eating salty ricerdquoHe names a plethora of venues he frequented mdash Lobby Bar at Hotel Sea Rock Bandra J49 Juhu The Cellar Nariman Point Avalon which was in the basement of Bawa International Hotel JuhuIn 2026 though this writer can count these kinds of venues on her fingers Sure parties still exist But where is the community When do you get to bump into the same people club after club Where is the circuit of creatives who all live it up together When did this city stop dancingContent creator Apoorva Mukhija or therebelkid to her 44 lakh followers laments this very loss in one her latest Reels ldquoPartying in India especially in Mumbai sucks Clubbing culture is dead nobody moves on the dance floor everybodyrsquos constantly on their phones and for some reason everybody wants to be behind the DJ booth Clubbing is just not as fun as it used to berdquoldquoIt was definitely a more tolerant city back in the dayrdquo Kably says ldquoToday you have phones People can call you track your location Yoursquore constantly on social media Back in the day there was much more anonymity You could let your hair down without worrying about being photographedrdquoAs the clubs shut at 130 am there is a growing anxiety to get home quicker ldquoThere wasnrsquot as much anxiety about meeting complete strangers back thenrdquo Talwar says ldquoPeople werenrsquot constantly wondering about motives incentives or hidden agendas It felt simplerrdquoAs the city expanded so did concerns around noise complaints ldquoThis is also a city where residential and party areas are rarely separatedrdquo Talwar says ldquoI remember Hawaiian Shack in Bandra being located in the middle of a residential neighbourhood People would come out at 130 or 2 am after a party and make noise on the streets Naturally local residents werenrsquot happy about itrdquoDJ Russel who is the chief of music at High Note now says that back in the day officially parties would end by 5 or 6 am but unofficially they would go on till 10 am ldquoIrsquove even reached home at noonrdquo he jokesRusselrsquos biggest problem ldquoI donrsquot like the fact that we arenrsquot present in the moment Do you really need to capture this Yoursquore missing out on a fun experience you could be having right now by putting that phone awayrdquo he says ldquoIrsquom going to see if I can start a nophonesonthedancefloor policy at High NoterdquoKably adds ldquoThings have become much harder to deal with Kids today probably have more complicated things to navigate You have access to how things work in every part of the worldrdquo Todayrsquos kids know what can go wrong before they even step into a club mdash your drink could get spiked your friend could experience alcohol poisoning or a stranger could touch you without consentThe party never stops for the young though ldquoIt depends on how you define itrdquo Talwar says ldquoFor younger people today alcohol is becoming less attractive because theyrsquore more conscious about health Coffee culture is much stronger today than it was before Coffee raves festival culture gig culture are at a peak So young people are going out but there are just many more definitions of a party nowrdquoMangeshkar chimes in ldquoToday people talk about Bonobo AntiSocial and Khar Social Back then we also had our equivalent spaces Thatrsquos why I often say that not much has actually changed There are still people who want something different from the commercial birthdayparty viberdquoldquoBDSM Bhaijaan Dance Sound Machine National Permit our DJ collectives still exist alongside newer initiatives like Amhi Kon and Right to Dancerdquo Mangeshkar says ldquoSome nights feel like the old days mdash DIY decor homemade visuals and a communitydriven energy The spirit of experimentation is still aliverdquoldquoAt the end of the day nightlife shouldnrsquot simply exist as an escape from work stress It should be a way of exploring culture creativity and human connection Thatrsquos what made those early years specialrdquo Mangeshkar signs offThe cop who crashed the partyACP Vasant DhobleFor many the death of the cityrsquos carefree nightlife arrived with ACP Vasant Dhoble In 2012 his latenight raids on pubs and clubs often conducted with a hockey stick in hand turned him into Mumbairsquos most feared ldquomoral coprdquo and a symbol of the crackdown on afterdark revelryA year of freedom and dancing all nightSunday midday editor Aastha Atray Banan remembers the year 2005 mdashwhen she was 22 out all night all 365 nights of the yearI had come to Mumbai from Delhi and was working at a newspaper in Lower Parelrsquos Todi Mills But the party wasnrsquot there mdash it was back in Bandra West Every night my soul sister for the year S and I used to first head to Hawaiian Shack on 16th Road around 10 pm Entry was free for the ladies and our choice of drink was a Cocacola unless someone bought us a drinkMy salary was a measly R10000 then half of which went in paying rent for my PG near Mehboob StudiosBut we were young and tipsy on freedom that only Delhi girls value The Shack played retro music till 1 am after which we scooted on to Lobby Bar at Hotel Sea Rock I usually went to sleep every night at 6 am only to wake up at 1 pm to head to work We made friends we danced a lot and we truly felt young free and safe that yearA retro comebackA few bars around the city are trying to bring back the good old daysJeet Rana and Naville TimbadiaEvery Thursday at Bonobo Bandra is a throwback to the founder Neville Timbadiarsquos own party days at Ghetto Timbadia tells us ldquoI still have my Ghetto gang We still make sure to meet once a weekrdquo on their ldquoOld school bar nightrdquo where the music transports you back to the rsquo90sIf Bonobo is taking you to the rsquo90s Punchline in Bandra Reclamation wants to go back to the 1600s ldquoThatrsquos when the punch was first inventedrdquo says founder Jeet Rana The bar plays retro music mdash from Boney M to Backstreet Boys ldquoWe want people to come into the bar sing with strangers and make new friends just like back in the dayrdquo he says Although music still sets the vibe for every place ldquotodayrsquos customers want equal focus on the food and beverage elements as well So bars have moved towards that as wellrdquo Rana saysA new club with an old vibeThe places that shaped my youth where I spent so much time listening to music and socialising donrsquot really exist anymore in the same wayrdquo says Shreyas Rathod who is a bornandbroughtup Bandra boy This Friday he opened the doors to his brand new bar High NoteThe moment we step into High Note this writer can feel the ghost of many parties that happened here before The bar stands at the very place where Bandrarsquos first discotheque Rock Around The Clock once stood mdash Hotel Metro Palace on Hill Road ldquoThatrsquos where I grew up This is a full circle moment for merdquo says RathodHigh Note is entering the market with a simple mission mdash bring the 1980s back Bring back a time when partygoers stepped into a bar to immerse themselves into music grab drinks that they couldnrsquot get enough of and dance like nobody is watchingHigh Notersquos wall of fame of rockstars PicsAshish RajeIn our tour we spot the wall of fame that features music legends such as Freddie Mercury Michael Jackson David Bowie among others who are all reimagined to be military officers or royalty Right next to it is the stage where a band will play live music every weekThen we move to order our drink and much to our amusement the menu is called ldquoSet listrdquo Our drink is ldquoSound Checkrdquo a whiskeybased refreshing mix of lemon and coconutDelba Ponnappa who is the head of guest experience and service excellence says that a neighbourhood like Bandra just lends itself to the vibe of the bar She says ldquoOn Sundays yoursquoll call your mother and say lsquoCan you put the radio volume down Wersquore sleepingrsquo But your mother wonrsquot turn the music downrdquoDelba PonnappaldquoWe will never play Bollywood or EDMrdquo Ponnappa says as she gives us a tour of the space ldquoWe know who our target audience is and they want to listen to rsquo60s and rsquo70s rockrdquoRathod still thinks ldquothe target audience is relatively smallrdquo ldquoI think there is a fear that it wonrsquot work commercially and that may be one reason why people donrsquot start places like thisrdquo says Rathod who is a firsttime restaurateur ldquoFor me this has been driven by passion Of course Irsquom not saying Irsquom interested in making losses But this is something Irsquove started because I genuinely love itrdquo